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SKETCH AND PAINT A SCI-FI MARKET
ImagineFX
|December 2025
ZiYuan Wang demonstrates his creative process when working up an environment concept for the video game industry
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There are many approaches an artist can take when painting concept art for the video game industry, but because it's artwork that will be used to create a commercial product there are certain aspects that need to be borne in mind.
In this workshop I'm going to show you my process step-by-step, as I create an environment concept and break down my approach from a concept designer's perspective.
This tutorial will be of interest to those who want to create their own concept art, and especially for artists who aspire to break into the video game industry.The aim of this workshop is to give you an insight into my thinking and methods as an concept artist, and explore my workflow for video game assignments. You'll see some steps that involve the free, open-source 3D tool Blender, which is widely used to create visuals in the gaming industry. It would be helpful if you have some basic knowledge of Blender, because you'll understand more of my process. However, don't worry if you're new to Blender because this article is going to show you my workflow rather than teach you how to use software. And if you're keen to learn, you can find plenty of Blender tutorials on YouTube.
One final point: it's okay if you're unfamiliar or not keen on the sci-fi theme, because I use most of the processes mentioned in this article to tackle other subjects, too.1 Set an design objective
This story is from the December 2025 edition of ImagineFX.
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